Don't count out Chandler just yet

November 27, 2003|By David Haugh, Tribune staff reporter.

Chris Chandler watched Bears practice Wednesday with a shoulder stiff enough to keep him on the sidelines again Thursday, and he still doesn't know whether he will play Sunday against the Cardinals. That's the bad news for the Bears.

The good news is the Cardinals don't know either.

"We are doing things within our defensive practice, we are adding reps [at practice] to prepare one way for Chandler and one way for Kordell [Stewart], because you need to do it," said Cardinals coach Dave McGinnis, a Bears assistant from 1986-95.

McGinnis hoped one of his old acquaintances in the Chicago media might drop a hint.

"I was there for 10 years," McGinnis said. "Who the [heck] is playing?"

Not even Dick Jauron can say for sure yet. Ideally, Jauron wanted Chandler back on the field Thursday, but Chandler thought that was too soon after consulting with trainers.

"I'd like to have him have at least a day of practice, but he's a guy who has 16 years experience and worked through the course of the season," Jauron said. "That decision will be made late."

Chandler, feeling minor soreness, thinks the amount of practice time can be overrated for a veteran 11 games into a season. As long as he feels fine on Sunday, he believes he should play.

"[Practicing] is the least of my worries," Chandler said. "By this stage of the season, you're in a groove and you're getting a lot of mental reps."

Mentally, Stewart will approach Sunday as if Chandler won't play but accepts the possibility he will. Such is Stewart's new reality with the Bears. His public comments about his role have sounded like they were straight out of the Backup Quarterback's Handbook even if he occasionally makes veiled references to a Bears' offense he still believes shackled him in the first five games of the season.

"Patience is a virtue," said Stewart, who took most of the reps with the first team Wednesday.

Asked how different the offense would be with him at quarterback compared to Chandler, Stewart replied, "No difference, for the most part."

That contrasted with wide receiver Marty Booker's acknowledgment in the locker room that the Bears have two game plans for Sunday--"one for Chris and one for Kordell."

Bears fans--and Cardinals players and coaches--just will have to wait at least another day or two to see.

"It feels a little stiff and sore, but it feels a lot better," Chandler said. "Hopefully [Thursday] or Friday, I'll be ready to go. I'm anticipating it being better."